Arthurian Legends Revealed In Thomas Malory's Le Morte D Arthur

In Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur, King Arthur had some incredibly complicated relationships. One that likely comes to mind is his friendship with Sir Lancelot, who had an affair with his wife Guinevere. Although the drama and love between the three of them makes an entertaining read, it was Arthur's relationship with his half-sister Morgan that helped shaped Arthur's character and ultimately how he would be remembered. King Arthur and Queen Morgan's relationship was perhaps the most controversial in the legends because not only were they half-siblings who share a child together but they also usually faced each other as adversaries. Their love-hate relationship ended in a strange but loving way. Morgan le Fay, accompanied by ladies in hoods,

It was common during Malory's time for people to mix Pagan and Christian stories together. For example, Arthur Brown's article “From Cauldron of Plenty to Grail” said that “it was common during the early Middle Ages for men to christianize heathen customs and tailsmans, and to incorporate into legends of saints, stories that belonged to heathen deities” (Tomaselli 20). It is because of this christianization that the Arthurian legends evolved to include both Christian and Pagan elements. In early Arthurian legends such as “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight”, Arthur and his knights were faithful to Christian tradition attending mass and praying regularly while also accepting, as Gawain did when he wore the green girdle that was supposed to be enchanted to protect him from death, the magic in the world around them. Gawain held true to his Christian values and faced the Green Knight, who may be seen as the Pagan deity the “Green Man”, however in the end they came to respect and care for one another. In other words, one religion did not win over or kill the other, instead they found a way to understand each other. Later the Pagan symbols became more subtle as “Malory reflects thin christianization absorption on a literary level” (Fritscher 24). For example in Sir Malory's “The Miracle of Galahad”, the pure Christian knight Sir Galahad finds the Holy Grail. The grail was once a dish of plenty, a pagan

As Fritscher put it, Arthur had a “childhood-to-kingship surrounded by the supernatural” (Fritscher 26). Merlin is important because he put the sword Excalibur into the stone, which started Arthur's journey as king, and he also advised Arthur quite often since he could see the future. Nevertheless, it is Arthur's relationship with Morgan that in the end earns him the title. In fact, it could be that Morgan herself put the words on Arthur's tomb as she was the last person seen with Arthur before his body was returned. In life, Arthur was easily a Christ figure leading up to his death. He was a well-known heroic king who was betrayed by his own people. Interestingly, Arthur turns to magic with his dying breath in what seems to be a very personal